A Grimm Cinderella
by Concrete Angel7
Summary: In the storyline, Cinderella is shown to be an innocent maiden who unfortunately lives with her wretched stepmother and stepsisters. Is Cinderella really that innocent? And what lies in her shadowy past?
1. The Cinderella Story

**Everybody knows the story of Cinderella dating back to when they were children. A poor maiden who lives with her wretched step mother and step sisters; one day, there's a ball; Cinderella is not invited to go; bibbity bobbity boo the fairy godmother appears; Cinderella has to get back before midnight; she meets the prince; she loses a glass shoe etc, etc. Long story short, quoting every single fairy tale there is, "And they lived happily ever after."**

**Yeah, well, if you were smarter as a kid you would have been the least bit suspicious about why there is never a happily ever after in life, and yet some random guys (the Grimm Brothers) decided to slap those six little words at the end of every story. I was one of the few who ever asked my parents as a child: **

"**Why isn't there a happily ever after in real life?"**

**Every time I would ask they would bid me the same response:**

"**Well that's just not the way it works in life. You'll find out when you're older."**

**It took me a while to realize what a true Cinderella story would actually be: nonexistent. Now, though, I think I have a good idea of what Cinderella would be: a nightmare. A nightmare passed on and on for generations at a time warped from time that ended up being some rags to riches story about fairies and happily ever after, and finally, there you are passed out on the floor from numbing boredom.**

**Well the story I'm about to tell you is how the story really occurred. It is the true version of Cinderella, how she was, and how she came to be. This is the version that they modified so the little kids wouldn't cry in the middle of the night. The only people, back then, who would tell the innocent minded children the true story of Cinderella, were the baby sitters, who didn't really care if the kids wet their pants or start screaming at the top of their lungs because they had a nightmare. The only thing they would say when something like that happened was, "Suck it up and be a man!" So without further interruption, I give you Cinderella.**

"Mirror, mirror," Cinderella said, as she dabbed on the last of her makeup, "On the wall, who's the fairest one of all?" She stared into the mirror expectantly, as if waiting for an answer. Cinderella did a small turn in her wedding dress, admiring herself in the act. "Soon I will be queen and everyone including my wretched stepmother and my two wicked step sisters will have to bow before my very shadow," she said followed by a full diabolical laugh.

Cinderella had always known that one day something like this would happen. I mean she was beautiful, and smart. She knew that she would somehow trick someone into marriage, especially if it was someone as dumb as the prince. She just didn't know it would happen like this. She smiled and broke into laughter as she recalled the memory of it all.

~ Flashback ~

One Saturday, as she was cleaning her sister Genevieve's bedroom, she peered out the window to see a carriage coming towards the house. She immediately recognized the carriage as one of the ones from the castle that the king used to deliver messages. "Mother," she called out, "one of the king's carriages is coming to the door. Should I greet them and allow them in?" Not long after, her stepmother called back, "No, no you keep cleaning. I'll open the door and greet the visitors." That day, they received an invitation to the ball that the dashing, handsome (the girls giggled as they also heard the word "single") prince would be hosting, as part of his plan to find a bride.

Cinderella begged to go to the ball, but her stepmother didn't allow her and kept her busy doing chores for the rest of the day. The night of the ball, Cinderella ran out of the house to a weeping willow tree outside in the backyard of their home. She ran up to the edge of the tree, fell to her knees, and cried. She knew she wouldn't go to the ball that night, and her conniving heart shattered into a thousand miniscule greed filled pieces. Then a miracle happened. Out of the very branches of the weeping willow that her mother planted popped out a beautiful dress and matching shoes. Cinderella eagerly grabbed both and went up to her room to go change.

Cinderella came out of her room excitedly, wearing the beautiful blue dress and amazing leather and glass slippers. She had put on a light and just right amount of makeup to show off her natural features. She put on a headband that matched the dress and pearl earrings. The dress complimented her long blonde hair, and she looked like a star that had run away from the sky (on the outside, at least). "Now, for a ride," Cinderella muttered to no one in particular. She almost caused a crash of carriages as she waved a fair hand to hail a carriage. The drivers, eager to transport such a rare piece of cargo, jumped out of their seats to coax her into their carriage. And with that, they started back towards the ball.

When Cinderella arrived at the ball, it was already 9:00 in the evening. _Great, just what I need. Only three hours until I have to go and beat my stepmother and step sisters back home, _she thought. She entered the ballroom as if she was gliding on ice. Almost all the heads had turned in her direction. The other heads that weren't were at the bar, already as drunk they could ever be or sitted so close to their wives that their strained neck would only tempt their spouse even more than they already have to behead them. _One of those turned heads better be the prince's_, she thought. A man came up to her in a white uniform and asked her if she wanted to dance. "Yes," she replied. Cinderella had meant for it to only be one dance, but the man clung onto her and wouldn't let her go. He chased away every other suitor who would have liked the honor to dance with her, and ruined her evening and any chance she had to meet the prince. When they would dance, he would ask about her family and her home life. She answered each of his questions with a lie. _Man, stalker much,_ she thought, _now where's the damn prince?! I don't see him anywhere! _Cinderella stayed the rest of the night with the prince (who she didn't know was the prince and wanted to get away from as fast as she could). Suddenly, just as she was once again trying to worm out of a dance, the clock struck twelve_. Midnight_, she thought, _already? _At that moment, she knew she had to leave for home. She released herself from the prince's grip. "Wait where are you going?" the man inquired. Cinderella knew she had to come up with a good excuse pretty damn quick. "I—have to go and talk to the prince," she lied. "But - - -," the prince interrupted. "I have to go!" Cinderella said, annoyed. And with that she left! _God, that guy was so annoying! If I_ _ever see him again it will be too soon_, she thought, just as she sped out of the ballroom.

Nearly causing all Hell to break loose between two drivers, the youngest and most handsome driver speedily drove her back to her home, arriving only seconds before her family's carriage pulled onto the curb. She quickly undressed, undid her make up, changed in to different clothes, and pretended she was asleep in bed. All she could think about was how much of a waste the night was. _I danced with the only man I regret I ever_ _met_, she thought, _and I didn't get anywhere near enough to meet the prince! My dance partner was pretty hot, though... _Those were her last thoughts before she fell asleep.

The next day, after she woke up and made breakfast for her (in Cinderella's opinion "needy") family, giving herself whatever crumbs were left over as she was not allowed to eat from the meal or use any of the plates, their family got a note from the kingdom that recited the following message:

Dearest members of our kingdom,

As you may or may not know, last night the prince held a ball so he could search for a wife, who would end up being the new queen of the land. Last night, the prince danced with a beauty from this kingdom whose name he never got, but immediately fell in love with. None of us recognized her as anyone we may know, but as all hope was almost lost, we found something of hers that will help us find her and will also allow us to reunite the prince with his true love: a Christian houboutin glass slipper.

We shall be going door-to-door to see if the shoe fits any fine young woman. Whoever this shoe fits, shall be married to the prince at once and shall also be pronounced the princess of the land. Please do not let this door-to-door process keep you from doing your regular tasks.

Sincerely,

The King

Cinderella read the message again, with her sisters reading over her shoulder (they were really slow readers). _That annoying guy from_ _the ball was the prince,_ she thought, _Wow! Who would have thought it was him?_ _They really should give him lessons in Non-Stalker101 because it's just getting creepy learning about how much he's trying to find me! The night didn't go that badly after all. _Cinderella left the room, thinking of every single thing she would do as the princess of the land, and, when the time came, as the queen.

The carriages and the Duke didn't show up until the following week but, they were ready for their arrival either way. "Now girls how are you to act in front of the Duke?" the step mother inquired, and of course she knew both of the sisters knew the answer off the top of their heads. "We are to act polite and well-behaved. We shall not fight in front of the Duke; we shall not horseplay in front of the Duke; and we shall not say anything impolite nor exhibit any sort of misbehavior in front of the Duke," both the sisters replied in unison. "And Cinderella, what are you to do in front of the Duke?" her stepmother asked skeptically, giving Cinderella a smirk in the process. "I shall go around doing the daily chores and cleaning up the house. I shall not speak with the Duke and will not make eye contact with any of the other people who may be here," Cinderella replied. After her step mother turned around, Cinderella rolled her eyes at the stupidity of what her stepmother was doing. _So she is keeping the prince from his true love,_ Cinderella thought sarcastically,_ Tsk, tsk, tsk, stepmother. Tsk, tsk, tsk._

After what seems like forever, the men from the castle finally filed in. They each wore a white uniform with golden epaulets to match their gold buttons and cufflinks, and topped it off with shiny black shoes with a gold toe cap. The very last man to walk in, whom everyone presumed was the Duke, came in with a very haughty manner carrying the glass slipper. He carefully placed the slipper on the table and waited for the room to quiet down from excitement (which didn't take as long as you would have thought). "Ladies of this household, the prince has fallen madly in love with one young woman from the kingdom. As you know, each maiden who had gone to the ball has tried on this glass slipper. So far, no one has been able to fit themselves into the shoe. So, if all the young ladies could please line up to try on this shoe, we could all get back to doing our usual work instead of having to deal with such… people," the Duke said, looking at everything as if it were made of trash. _If he was looking at everything like it was trash, then he hasn't looked in the mirror recently, _Cinderella thought,_ he has a monocle and a handle bar moustache! What is this the 19__th__ century?! Wait I think it is! Never mind, make that the 18__th__ century, then. _Immediately each of her step sisters tried on the slipper. To the oldest, most mature, and (somehow) the kinder one of the both, Elizabeth, the shoe fit a bit too tight. To her other sister, Genevieve, who was the elegant, diligent, and the more sociable one of the two, the slipper fit far too small.

"Milady, are you sure there are no other girls here that had gone to the ball?" the Duke asked, with one foot already out the door, "By the way, I don't _want_ to ask; I'm obliged to ask that just before I leave the residence." The stepmother quickly replied, "Nope, nobody else in this house went to that ball. It was just my daughters and me." Her voice was testy, as if she was giving Cinderella a hidden message. _We all know you went to the ball; protest, I dare you!_ Cinderella ignored the message, even though she could read it in her stepmother's voice as clear as glass. "Actually, Duke, I went to the ball and I danced with a man whom also never gave me his name or his position in society. May I try on the slipper? It matches the other one I have; I lost its pair the night of the ball. I guess I was in such a hurry to get home, I didn't notice when it fell off," Cinderella said, trying her hardest to hide the greed in her voice and the eagerness she had to try on the slipper and get the show over with. The Duke rolled his eyes and replied, "Very well then, but prepare for disappointment just like your other sisters."

The Duke sat down again, with a look in his eyes that says, _here we go again. _Cinderella carefully grabbed the shoe and tried it on. Her last thoughts just before her foot went into the shoe and broke the glass between low-class and high-class royalty were, _finally, the kingdom shall not see me as Cinderella, the poor peasant girl from the Tremaine residence, but Cinderella, the princess of the kingdom and the newly wed wife of the Prince; and, with all the money and power of my status, I shall be known as the most powerful ruler this land has ever known._

~ End of Flashback ~

Cinderella sat in front of the mirror once more. She thought of the Prince and her immediate disgust was back. Then she thought again about royalty and relief flooded her face again. She thought of the speech she would be forced to give at her crowning ceremony. She was thinking of just saying how she would "help lower taxes among society" and "try to help the needy" and whatever else any person would say. She just couldn't get off her mind what being princess would be like. She thought of all the riches, and fine jewelry, and the balls, and parties, and the rooms, and the ceremonies, and everything that came along with being the princess.

_And the best part is this will all take place at sunset, _Cinderella thought,_ nothing stands in my way of marriage. No one can get in my way of royalty, and no person will ever be able to overthrow me._


	2. The Wall of Lies

The Prince looked out the window of his room. He could see where the Grand Duke stood, ordering all the objects moved around on the platform where Cinderella and him were to get married. All the Prince could think about was the wedding and Cinderella. She had been acting very differently since they had brought her into the castle. He knows it's the same girl from the ball that he had danced with, but something about her just isn't the same from that night.

When the kingdom first found her, she was covered from head to toe in soot and cinders. She was dressed like a maid and a peasant, even though her family was dressed in very formal and well made clothing, and her family is more upper-middle class than anything else. At first this didn't make much sense to the Prince, but then Cinderella told him her "innocent" little story, a completely warped version of what really happened (but as if the Prince would realize THAT):

"Well, my step mother and step sisters had turned from being nice to me when my father was alive, to being horrible and treacherous people who then forced me to work as their maid and, sometimes, I think they treat me more like a slave than anything else," Cinderella said, fake tears rolling down her face (as aforementioned, of course the Prince didn't know that), "I always cried myself to sleep every night, thinking about my father and my real mother, always hoping that one day they would come back and take me out of that prison. Then the invitation for the ball came, and I was so excited and looking forward to it, but then, my step mother forbad me to go and gave me many chores to do for that night just to keep me busy and not be able to go to the ball. Then a fairy godmother appeared to me and, she gave me the most beautiful dress and slippers I have ever seen. She told me that at midnight the spell would reverse itself and, I would turn back into the slave I am treated like again. At first, I only came to see what it would be like. Then, I met you and, we danced the night away and, well, I fell in love. Then the clock stroked midnight and I knew I had to run away as fast as I could before you could see what I really truly was: to my mother, to my step sisters, and to my kingdom: a meager, low-class peasant. That's all I've ever been seen through their eyes. Finally, I came home and cleaned myself up to look like my old self, which I will always be no matter how high I may seem and appear to anyone, really. The next day I heard about the search the kingdom was doing to find a girl who left the ball and all that they would use to find her was a glass slipper. At first I found it strange that the girl might have the same glass slippers I wore. Then I thought, _Maybe the fairy godmother works for more than one person._ It took me a while to realize that one of my glass slippers from the ball was missing. About a week later, the Grand Duke showed up with the glass slipper, and that's when I knew the slipper belonged to me. Against my mother's wishes I tried on the shoe and it fit me perfectly, just like it did the night of the ball, and here I am now, with you, and I couldn't be happier."

It was the day of the wedding and, the Prince just couldn't stop thinking if what he was doing was really worth all the trouble of what he was going through. He didn't even know if he was ready to commit to someone who's had such a past and who now seems totally different from who she used to be only a week or two ago. He just had to get his mind off of things. _Maybe a nice stroll and some fresh air might get your mind settled down on what you really want, _he thought. With that, he left his bedroom and didn't bother to see the time. 7:00. Two hours before the wedding.

The Prince decided to take a walk in the gardens, since it would become a little suspicious if the Prince roamed around the inside of the building, haunting around the halls like a ghost in broad daylight. He entered through the pearl white gates of the garden he had nicknamed "The Garden of Eden." The garden held all sorts of flowers, trees, and plants he had ever seen, from rose bushes, to the rare tacca chantrieri, from the common apple tree, to the almost extinct bois dentelle, from catnip to sage. He always seemed to admire the small river that floes through the garden, where the lilies bloom. The garden was always beautiful and so full of life to him. It was always like his own safe haven, where nothing could ever happen to him or affects him in any way. He remembered all those days he'd spent there as a child. He remembered coming here to play and climb the trees when he was merely three. He remembered when he was in school and he would climb up here to work on his homework or come up with ideas for school projects. He used to think about things in that garden that were forbidden to be thought about anywhere else. He would always just imagine what would happen if one day, he left the kingdom and never came back. He thought of the infinite possibilities that came along with the idea of leaving his family behind, and all the pressure that came along with being the prince: trying to act and be perfect, something no one could ever succeed at.

"Um, excuse me, aren't you the man the Grand Duke is looking for?" a voice came from behind the Prince, interrupting his thoughts. "I happen to only listen to my own thoughts, and I work on my own. So if you could just- - -" the Prince said as he turned around. He stopped and looked in amazement, fore he saw a beautiful woman his own age behind him. She looked at him with the most dazzling, kind green eyes he'd ever seen. She stood behind him, hands on her hips, waiting for an answer. Her long blonde hair gently flew in the thin breeze, her dark green dress swaying with the wind with each step she took towards him. "Yes, I am," the Prince finally replied after a long moment of silence, "The real question right now, though, is who are you?" The maiden stood there for a moment, as if she had forgotten her name, and then replied, "I am Elizabeth, one of Cinderella's step sisters."

The Prince stood there, shocked for a moment. _This stunning young woman is one of Cinderella's step sisters_, the Princethought, _she is one of the horrible people who had tortured her throughout her life? "_I am not here to fraternize with the people who made my fiancée's life a living nightmare, so it would be best we both left right now and pretend this conversation was nonexistent," he said with venom in his voice. "What are you talking about?" Elizabeth inquired, bewildered by the Prince's impulse to get away from her involving something to do with her being Cinderella's stepsister. "Don't try to play innocent with me, Elizabeth," the Prince inserted, "We both know how badly you treated her, how you turned your head away from her the minute her father died, all the sin you and your family have committed involving her, like she was dirt at your feet, like she was a disgrace. Cinderella is one of the kindest, most amazing people I've ever met, and you threw her away and to the side as if she was unimportant, you and the rest of your family are a disgusting disgrace to this kingdom and I pity you for everything you have done to her. May God bless your soul and show you mercy in the afterlife."

"So that's what she told you," Elizabeth said, half to herself half to the Prince, in a composed, hushed tone, "I knew something had to be wrong with this picture." After the Prince finally collected his thoughts again and his temper settled down he replied, "What do you mean?" "She didn't tell you the actual story of what happened, did she?" Elizabeth inquired. "Well she told me a version of what happened," the Prince replied with impudence. The Prince told the story he had heard since Cinderella arrived, the one story he could never get out of his mind. "And that's what she told me," the Prince finally concluded. "Fairy godmother? My stepfather died? Her mother didn't die when Cinderella was a little girl," Elizabeth said, shaking her head at the Prince's ignorance, "How did you believe such an obvious lie? I mean, a fairy godmother just magically appeared and gave her the dress? Yeah, next thing you know designer purses fall from the sky. Oh wait let me guess, better yet *POP* out they magically came from the tree in the backyard where Cinderella's mother's headstone is."

The Prince furrowed his eyebrows, befuddled, and answered, "Wait, wait, wait, I thought you said Cinderella's mother didn't die." "No, no, no," Elizabeth shot back, "I said Cinderella's mother didn't die _when Cinderella was a little girl_. I never said she didn't die." "Okay, I'm still confused on what happened," the Prince said. Elizabeth thought for a moment. _Maybe I should tell him, _Elizabeth thought_, he's about to get married to Cinderella. He should at least know the story; it will lie on his shoulders and not mine on whether he wants to get wedded to Cinderella or not. _She sighed, "Okay, I'll tell you the account of Cinderella."

"Cinderella isn't exactly what you call an average girl from the community. The manor we live in, her _father's_ manor always held many secrets that everyone would wonder about. It all started when her grandfather initially bought the house with his wife, Cinderella's grandmother, by his side. Back then, the manor wasn't an item of suspicion in anyway. Then, Cinderella's father was born. Five years after her father's birth, his mother died under unknown circumstances. Many detectives and private investigators came into the house to see what happened and what may have caused for his mother's death, but no one could figure out anything, and some died before they could reach a conclusion. Finally, all the searches had given up, but there were always rumors and myths that Cinderella's grandfather had killed the grandmother. The kids were always told never to tread onto the property of the grandfather, whom they started calling "Old Man Henry." Even though the kids weren't allowed to play near his manor, the children always watched as Old Man Henry came out of his house every Sunday, with a drunken look in his eye, grab the mail from the mailbox, and go back in to the manor wordlessly. Every once in a while you might see the outline of the little boy that lived in the manor with Old Man Henry, but no one really knew what he looked like. Just like his father, he never came out of that house. That's the way it always was with Old Man Henry's manor: no one ever comes in; no one ever comes out. Except for Old Man Henry. Thirteen years passed since the death of Old Man Henry's partner, and it was the little ("Well, not so little anymore, I guess," Elizabeth said, interrupting her own story) boy's eighteen birthday. That day was the (literal) death of Old Man Henry; that was the start of Charles, his now eighteen year old son. By this time, even though all the drama of Old Man Henry's manor and son had settled down and stayed inactive for thirteen years and (of course) everyone's slight hatred towards Old Man Henry, everyone had wanted to know what happened to him. His corpse was found right where the balcony in the manor was, so, of course the police just drew conclusions and said he had committed suicide. No one believed that cover up for a second. Everyone believed the whole "Like father, like son," idea they had going on in their (relatively small, and air-headed) brains. Mystery shrouded the old manor for another seven years. Still, even throughout all the fuss, no one knew what Charles looked like. No one watched the house anymore (since they made it illegal to stalk someone). Charles would go out of the house using the back entrance, climb over the backyard fence, go into the city to obtain what he needed to purchase (groceries, home decorum, a wrench and tools for when the plumbing doesn't work), and go back to his residence, again using the back door. One day, while in town, he met a woman, fell in love, and, as time passed, asked her to marry him. They were an odd match; he was a psychologically disordered man who lost his father and his mother and whose father and him supposedly had murdered someone; she was a nice, sweet beautiful wonderful family girl that cared about every living thing in the world and who would never hurt a fly ("As you can see, they made a very bad match," Elizabeth said, interrupting furthermore, "I don't really know what was going on in that girl's head at the time."). His newly wed wife, Charlotte, even though she felt passionately for him, she did not know a single thing about his family or his past. All she knew was that his name was Charles. Finally, a week after Charles proposed, Charlotte asked him about his family. He said that his family had left him when he was a little boy, and that he was raised by foster parents, and that both foster parents recently died of sickness (not true). Charles had proposed that they have dinner at his house that evening so she could start getting used to the aura and could finally start moving in with him. That evening, Charles picked Charlotte up from her home and they walked towards his manor. They talked about local politics and music and theater that would be in town (small talk) as they walked the way there. Charlotte couldn't help but wonder about what it would be like in Charles' home. They finally stopped in front of Old Man Charles' manor. At first, Charlotte thought they would just walk by the place and maybe exchange a story of what they had heard happened there, but as Charles started to walk to the front door and held the key up towards the lock, she realized that's where she would be dining for the night. She finally realized that the man she had grown to love was Charles, Old Man Henry's son. She really couldn't get out of marriage now, and Charlotte had to move in with the man she had heard so many rumors about all those years as a child and as she was growing up. After that, Charlotte moved into the house wordlessly and lived with him no matter how much she wanted to yell out for someone to help her. When Charles would get drunk he would beat her until her innards were practically one the outside of her fragile body. A few years after she had settled down with him, Charlotte was pregnant with his baby. After she told Charles about the baby, the couple tried to do everything they could to make room for the child. They cleaned out one of the old bedrooms that weren't in use; they bought baby toys and a crib for the baby; and they started making a list of names they could use for the baby. Finally, a baby girl was born, which they decided to name Rosabella, whom they nicknamed Ella. Ella was treated like a princess from her mother, whom loved and cared for her dearly, while her father had treated her like a dog when Ella's mother was not around. Then, when Ella was thirteen, she ended up watching her mother die at the hands at her father. He was drunk again and he beat her so hard that night that she died; her innards really did become her outsides that time. He beat her in the living room, where Ella was quietly cleaning the chimney and saw the whole thing. The last thing Ella's father told her, just before he left the room and her life changed forever was: 'What are you looking at?' he said, sober, his breath reeking of alcohol, 'Don't you have some more cleaning to do, Cinder Ella?' That's what her father called her ever since that day, and that's what we got so used to hearing that we actually sometimes forgot what her real name was. People came and went and everyone in the village was saddened by the death of the nice woman they knew named Charlotte. They never found her body, but after we moved in we found out that her body was hidden in the ground, beneath the weeping willow tree that was planted by her very hands before she passed. Charles was able to trick another woman into marriage: our mother, Ella's stepmother. We moved in with him, where he made more space for us, as Mother had told him that she had two daughters from her first husband. The first day we lived there Genevieve and I were very much afraid of what would happen there, and we were scared that the ghosts of the people who died in that house would haunt us until death do we part from the house. Then, we met Ella. We didn't know Charles even had a daughter; he never once mentioned her to Mother. Ella was very kind to us the first couple of weeks we lived in Old Man Henry's manor. She explained to use the rules of the house that her father had told her and had set after the death of her mother. She told us of the chores we would do around the house, just to give us a fair warning. Ella showed us every nook and cranny of the house. She even showed us a couple secret passageways that would get use quicker to any part of the house. Then, after we settled in to the house and we were comfortable in our new home, she stopped talking to us. Every once in a while we would exchange a few words, but after that, nothing. After those few weeks, Cinderella's father started to act differently. Unlike his first wife, he never beat Mother or did anything to harm her, but to us he was treacherous. Every night he would walk into our bedroom and touch us. First me, then Genevieve. I would always be uncomfortable during that time. It wasn't natural to have your stepfather do that to you. It's just… odd. There is no other way to explain it. Every night while he was with us, he would always do a little more, until finally, it was just cold, rough rape. He was horrible. We would always try to tell Mother, to tell her that the man she married was practically Satan. She never believed us. Finally, one day, six months since we had spoken a word to Ella, she asked us the question we thought came way too late, 'So has he come to your room at night?' I sat down and started sobbing. I told Ella everything of what was happening, how he came in, how long he came in, what he would do to us. She knew what was going on, of course, and she told me the one thing I didn't want to hear: 'It gets easier, and you get used to the system.' I stared at her in shock; we were both only sixteen, and yet she was used to this kind of torture, this kind of pain from a man. It was horrible. I thought I was going to end up just like Ella's mother: dead and buried hastily under the backyard tree. I got used to thinking like that and not being able to trust anyone. I didn't even talk to my sister for a whole six weeks alone. Finally, three years into his toying with us, my mother walked in to the horrible sight of him doing IT with my sister and me silently crying in my bed from the pain of it all. My mother called the police and had him arrested for child abuse. Ella screamed not to arrest her father; she even accused my mother of lying to the police and that our stories of his doing things to us are false and that WE should be the ones going to jail and not him. In the end, when the verdict came through the mail to us, Charles pleaded not guilty, but the jury found him guilty and gave him a life sentence in prison. In my opinion, I don't really know why Ella was crying at the time, since he had been touching her the longest of all of us. Cinderella had been horrible since then. It was as if Charles was still here with us living through Cinderella, except she wouldn't touch us, of course. Cinderella was awfully mean to us. We tried to be nice to her in every possible way we could think of, but it was of no use. She had turned into a monster of what she used to be. Mother tried to be as kind to her as possible, but Cinderella was always cruel to us, as if it's our fault her father was a lunatic. Mother tried to punish Cinderella and try to teach her some discipline. Nothing worked. Finally we could only resort to making her the housemaid. We were always very kind to her, even if she was supposed to be the maid. Mother would buy her beautiful silk dresses and jewelry, which she would always throw away and get rid of. We let her keep her room, but she did the most horrible things in there. I accidentally walked in there one day, thinking it was the ladies room, and it was like walking into Hell. All over the wooden walls, there were knife marks, and I saw where she drew these demonic symbols on the walls with the knife. I walked around the room and saw her bathroom. The bathtub was stained with blood that's crimson color still stayed. I ran out of that room and swore I would never go in there again. The only reason Mother didn't let her go to the ball that night was that she didn't know how she would act, and she didn't know what she would say to the people there at the ball. We didn't know she snuck out; we didn't know she met you; we didn't know she would end up getting married to you; we didn't know what would happen; and now it's too late to change anything."

Elizabeth and the Prince sat there in silence, silent tears trickling down Elizabeth's cheeks. Neither of them knew what to say. The Prince was almost about to get married to a psychopath. Elizabeth finally recollected herself and asked, "So are you going to marry her or not?" "After what you told me, there is no way I will ever even consider that an option," the Prince said, "I'm afraid that what Cinderella's father did to his first wife, Ella is going to do that to me." "So you're going to go down there and call off the wedding?" Elizabeth asked. "Well, what else can I do? Wait for Cinderella to kill me?" the Prince said. "Yeah," Elizabeth said, looking down, "good point. The end had to come for Cinderella and I guess time caught up with her. I pray that sanity will some day get into her mind."

They changed the subject completely to something else. For the rest of the time they were there, they talked of music, art, poetry, and the theatre. Elizabeth and he had a lot of the same interests. And, even though they both knew it was wrong in a way, they felt a deep attraction for each other, even if this may be their first encounter with the other. Their conversations were weaving themselves around and around, and they got so caught up with it that they didn't notice an irate Duke coming towards them from behind Elizabeth. "Your Highness, the wedding starts in five minutes!" the Duke said, exasperated, "What are you even doing here with… wait who is this? Never mind, just go outside; everyone is waiting for you. Go!"

He grabbed Elizabeth by the hand and they raced towards the wedding. "Elizabeth," the Prince finally said, "I need you to go find a spot with your family. I guess now would be the time to call off the wedding and not when I'm forced to say I do." "Yes," Elizabeth replied, "now knock them dead! And I think with some people in the audience who overreact to things, you might actually be able to succeed in doing that." With that, Elizabeth sped off towards the audience of people waiting for the ceremony that would never come. The Prince got on the platform and turned towards the people. He cleared his voice and began, "Ladies and gentleman of this kingdom. I know you showed up here to see a wedding ceremony of me and Cinderella. Well, to many of your disappointments, I am here to announce that I want to call off the wedding." Murmurs and gasps rang through the audience of people there. The Prince looked towards Elizabeth, the only person he felt he could look at without seeing shame and disappointment in her eyes. He remembered there time together. Everything felt right with her, like she was a newly found part of him that he could never let go of or bear to see in the arms of another. He felt like she was the only other person in the world at that moment and he couldn't lose that feeling to any other bachelor. He looked at her once more as the murmurs settled down and continued, "But I would like to announce one thing more." He looked directly at her and continued, "Elizabeth, I cannot imagine one second without you. Not after today. Every time I look at you, I can't stop myself from thinking about you and only you. Now that you're in my life, I cannot imagine life without you."

Then, he asked the most risky question he could have ever asked. It was a question that could never be taken back, a question that can change a future. The one thing he should never have thought of or said in the first place is the one thing that came out of his mouth. They are the four little words that were the most dangerous to ask, and that changed the course of everything.

"Will you marry me?"


	3. A New Page

The room went quiet and everyone turned to look at her. The words raced in Elizabeth's mind. _Will you marry me? _She didn't know what to say. If she said no, she would feel the urge to turn back again and say yes. The Prince would be crushed. Cinderella might be happy, but she would still be enraged that the Prince chose her own stepsister over her. If she says yes like she completely wants to, the Prince would have them married in the morning and ask to use Cinderella's wedding dress, which might cause trouble with Cinderella, and given the fact that the Prince chose to marry her over Cinderella might make her go hysterical or do something of drastic out of rage or jealousy or to get revenge or whatever other reason she may have against her.

She thought once more on what was happening before her., silent tears of joy snaking down her cheeks. The Prince asked to marry her out of all the other beautiful maidens in the castle. Something like this doesn't just happen to anyone in the kingdom. The oddest part of the scene that played out before her was that they only knew each other for a couple hours, yet it felt like those hours were decades of knowing each other and decades of things you only learn from, well, decades. It was different when she was with him; it was different since the second she looked him in the eye when he was turning around. _Well_, Elizabeth thought_, I guess I'm going to have to break a heart today either way._

"Yes," she finally said, tears still streaking down her face, "I will marry you." The crowd erupted in cheers. Her mother was all smiles, happy to see that her eldest daughter was engaged before her time came, as she was growing older. Genevieve was excited that her sister was getting married, especially to someone as kind and, not to mention, as handsome as the Prince. _If only I could get married just as well as Elizabeth, _Genevieve thought as she silently sighed. She ran up to Elizabeth and hugged the air out of her. "Genevieve, let me breathe!" Elizabeth said, laughing like there was no tomorrow, "I didn't just get married; I'm only engaged. The wedding's tomorrow and I want to live to see the day!" "Oh, sorry," Genevieve replied, releasing her grip of her sister, "It slipped my brain that people need oxygen to live! So, who's going to be your maid of honor? Or who are going to be your bridesmaids? Are you going to change the décor, or are you going to keep it like this? Are you going to add a food table, because I'm starving?" Elizabeth thought for a moment, and then replied, "Fine, I'll ask about the food table; I'm keeping the décor; and Genevieve, would you like to be my maid of honor at my wedding?" Genevieve's smile grew wider, as she said "Yes, yes, yes! I'll be your maid of honor! So back to other things: what's the Prince like? Is he nice? Did he sweep you off your feet? Why did he cancel the wedding with Cinderella and propose to you? Was it love at first sight? Is it true love? Do you know if the Prince has a brother for me?" "The Prince is a real gentleman, and was raised very well; he is a very nice man; he definitely swept me off my feet; it was love at first sight; I think it might be; I'm not sure, but I'm 95% sure you can't marry your brother-in-law," Elizabeth replied, dodging the one question she just didn't feel like she could reply without feeling a wave of rue and guilt wash over her. "That's wonderful! He sounds like such a great person for you! I hope you two lovebirds are very happy together! If only I could find someone like that," Genevieve said with a sigh. "You're beautiful, nice, funny, smart, and frankly, you know how to keep a conversation going. Trust me you are going to find someone out there," Elizabeth replied, making Genevieve's smile grow wider, "Look, Genevieve, I would really like to stay and talk with you, but I have to go and straighten something out." Without waiting for a reply, Elizabeth ran of, in search of the almost bride.

_If I were stood up for my own stepsister, where would I go, _Elizabeth thought, _I would go somewhere relaxing to take all the tension away, and if I wanted to, somewhere where I could throw a tantrum. _Elizabeth first looked throughout every single room in the castle and the garden, but there was no sign that Cinderella was there. _C'mon! Where would Cinderella go? If I were Cinderella I would want to go somewhere where I could connect with my family, well, with the last shred of them anyway. _It finally struck Elizabeth that Cinderella would either go home or go visit her father in jail. Being very afraid of the prison guards and of Cinderella's father, she decided to go to the manor and check for Cinderella. Fortunately, a carriage driver offered her a lift as a wedding gift, and she hopped on and went home.

The first place she checked was the backyard, knowing that Cinderella spent a lot of time out there beneath the willow tree where her mother was buried. As Elizabeth walked outside she could feel the air around her getting colder and feel the breeze blowing harder. The wind almost sounded like a voice calling out to her, almost as if it was trying to warn her, pleading her to heed their message.

The wind howled the message to her again and again. Elizabeth didn't listen and kept walking around outside, until she stumbled upon the marker where Cinderella's mother lay only six feet below her, right next to the willow tree. She saw the makeup stains, where Cinderella had been crying, and a strand of the wedding dress that had ripped off. Elizabeth couldn't help kneeling down and praying that Cinderella's mother is somewhere safe and good, and has a wonderful spot among the angels above her. She remembered something Cinderella had told her in those couple of weeks when her family was moving in, about her mother having total faith in the Lord while she was alive and how she believed that everything that happens to us the Lord himself set it up for something better in life or in the afterlife. Elizabeth looked through her purse and finally found what she was looking for. She laid it softly on the ground, and prayed one last time, for on the grave was a small, white and gold rosary, and with that, she walked away.

After she came back inside she searched the places that Cinderella's father had always spent time in: his bedroom, his father's study, the library, and the balcony. The only things she found was the same as the backyard: a scrap of the wedding dress that tore off and makeup stains on the floor. Other than that, the rooms were exactly as they had left them just before they left to go to the wedding. She searched the other rooms, and she found nothing. She checked every single room but one, the room she had been afraid of going in again all those years, the room she could not make herself enter. She took a deep breath. She knew she had to check if Cinderella was in there or not, because the only other place she could be was visiting her father, and she wanted to go there even less. Elizabeth gathered up all the bravery she could muster and opened the door.

Cinderella sat on the floor of the bedroom, tracing an old carving she had made on the wooden floor of her bedroom. It was a simple fleur-de-lis carving, smoothed out over time. A little red dot was in the center of each of the petal on the fleur-de-lis. As Elizabeth walked in, Cinderella wordlessly looked up at her, hatred in her eyes. She cautiously walked in, until she was sitting right in front of her, just watching Cinderella tracing the fleur-de-lis. Cinderella could tell that Elizabeth was uncomfortable in the room. She knew Elizabeth wanted to come running out and never return to the room again, which was exactly what Cinderella wanted.

Cinderella looked up at Elizabeth again. Cinderella's once beautiful wedding dress was now torn around the edges, and pieces were hanging loosely from the seams. The dress spread around her as if she were in a pool of white. It almost looked like a dress the white swan would wear. Cinderella's make up was completely messed up from the crying. Her eyeliner and mascara was smeared beneath her eyes, giving her the appearance of a witch. Elizabeth sat there and looked back at her with a blank expression, trying her hardest to mask the horror she wanted to let out so badly right then.

"Do you like what I did with the room?" Cinderella asked eerily, breaking the silence, "Daddy had helped me decorate." Elizabeth tried to act as coolly as possible, but her voice cracked as she said, "Its okay, I guess. It's to your liking, and that's all that really matters." "To my liking," Cinderella repeated, "Three words I thought you would never say after today. If everything is to my liking, and that's what matters, as you said, why did today go so wrong and to my disliking? Tsk, tsk, tsk, you naughty girl. You should know better, Elizabeth. After all, I taught you how to live in this house; I can make you forget just as easily." Goosebumps ran up Elizabeth's arms. She knew she would have to face Cinderella sometime. She just didn't know it would be this hard. "Look, I know you are mad at me. I know you hate me right now. I know you would rather never see me again and only live with the memory, than to have me still here and remember every waking moment about what happened every time you look at me," Elizabeth continued. "Elizabeth, I know you are trying to make amends, but can you please try quicker because I feel like I am about to rip my eyes out of their sockets and hack off my ears. It's easier to ignore someone that way," Cinderella said, irritated by her stepsister's tedious way of speaking. "What I am trying to tell you is I'm sorry," Elizabeth replied apologetically, "I know I should have come to you first before I answered and I should have asked for your approval before I said anything. If you are not good with the arrangements, I'll tell him I reconsidered and we'll drop the wedding. It's just that ever since I met him, it's been different, in a sense. I know it sounds crazy that I say that after only a couple of hours, but it was like I known him an entire lifetime, like I could have told him anything or done anything for him. I don't know anymore, what I may or may not feel, I just know it was wrong for me to take you away from your almost-husband."

Cinderella sat there like before, staring off into space and tracing the fleur-de-lis on the ground, as the words sunk in. _You took me away from everything I ever wanted, money, fame, power, glory, and you are telling me 'I'm sorry, but I'm in love with your almost-husband and we're getting married tomorrow?' _Cinderella thought, _what happened to 'Oh, I'll reconsider and tell him to marry you?' _She couldn't believe how her own stepsister was telling her all this. _So much for 'Family has your back.' _Cinderella couldn't believe anything that was happening before her. _First, she takes away the only family I have and sends him to jail for something so meaningless; then, she and her family mock my very way of life that I had lived for the past years of my life; finally, she storms into my wedding, which I didn't even want to invite her to, and she brings herself to steal my fiancé and say 'Oh, but Ella it was nothing. It doesn't mean anything.' Well, newsflash, Elizabeth because this is never going to be nothing. _Cinderella sat there, covering her rage with a mask of a blank expression. She didn't know how to reply to Elizabeth's apology: whether to just get mad at her, or to simply let Elizabeth have all the fun of stealing what Cinderella desired to have so badly.

As if the answer to all her problems just slapped her in the face, she knew exactly what to do with Elizabeth. She knew what to do and how to do it. But she would need help. Expert help. It would be so easy to let Elizabeth play princess for a day, but this path was so much more… convenient for Cinderella. Easier. She just couldn't wait to get started.

Elizabeth looked at Cinderella waiting for an answer. She kept a blank expression on her face the entire time, just tracing the fleur-de-lis. It was hard to tell exactly what she was thinking, but Elizabeth could see the gears whirring in Cinderella's head. For good or for bad, this is the decision that can either keep her away from the person she most desired to be with or give her the happily ever after that only came from the fairytales her mother used to tell her as a child. There was a longer moment of silence before Cinderella finally replied, "Okay."

Elizabeth stared at her in amazement. She never thought that the girl who blamed her and her family for her father's arrest would actually give her the permission to actually marry the man whom was supposed to be Cinderella's own husband. "Thank you, thank you, thank you, " Elizabeth replied, hugging Cinderella. Cinderella didn't expect her reaction to be so sincere and surprised. She awkwardly patted Elizabeth's back. Elizabeth immediately released her. "Sorry, I was just expecting the worst." Cinderella's eyes turned dark once more. "And why would you think that?" Cinderella inquired innocently, although the question was as dark as night. Elizabeth got up from the floor, thanked Cinderella once more, and left, avoiding the question entirely.

Elizabeth closed the door to the bedroom. She didn't know whether to jump up in excitement or start worrying about the wedding, like every other bride would. So many things passed in only a couple of hours, it was hard to tell what to do next, now that all the drama was over. Mystery still surrounded Cinderella's decision entirely, but Elizabeth was happy that she at least said yes. _Wait a minute, I need to get back to the castle, _Elizabeth thought, _Mother and Genevieve must want to know where I am, and Genevieve will end up pressing to know why I left so suddenly. _She raced back to the castle, only thinking about what lied in the future for the Prince and her.

"Oh, Elizabeth, there you are. The Prince was just telling us of the castle and the guest rooms. Do sit down, dear, you look much too tired," Elizabeth's mother said, gesturing to the nearest available seat. "Yes, Mother," Elizabeth said, trying to mop away the sweat from her forehead with her dress sleeve. Elizabeth sat down at the mahogany table just as dinner was being served. She took in the sight of the turkey in the center of the table and couldn't help drooling over the delicious oven baked smell that surrounded the room from that very item. She could hear the sound of her stomach growling pounding in her ears, as if calling out to her, _feed me, feed me. _"Mother, can you please pass me a helping of…well…everything?" She could see her sister from across the table, with her head bent down, trying to hold in her laughter that was about to erupt.

As Lady Tremaine passed her the dinner plate, with a reasonable helping of everything served before them, she felt something hit her leg. Elizabeth quickly made a steal for the object before anyone could notice and kept it in her lap. It was a minute pen, rolled up in a paper napkin. Written in small hand writing read:

Eliza, where were you?! Mother was worried sick when you disappeared like that, and the Prince went in search for you immediately afterwards! You can't hide anything from me; I know it had to do with Ella. What happened, and should I call the police?  
-G

Elizabeth rolled her eyes in her sister's direction. Genevieve kept stealing glances at Elizabeth knowing she was reading every word written on the note. Elizabeth swiftly replied that she was fine and it was none of her business what happened that day. With that, she sent the pen and napkin sailing underneath the table towards Genevieve's leg with one kick of her high heel. Genevieve flinched as the pen and paper hit her on the leg from underneath the table. She grabbed the objects just before they fell to the ground. Elizabeth quickly finished her meal, and left the room, without a word exchange to anyone. A minute after she left, she heard footsteps following her from behind. "Genevieve, I already told you I'm not going to tell you!" Elizabeth exclaimed, annoyance filling her voice as she kept walking away. "Actually, I wanted to know if you wanted to go for a stroll outside. I guess not," said a familiar male voice from behind her. Surprised, Elizabeth turned around to see the Prince standing behind her, arms crossed a twinkle in his eyes. "I'm so sorry; I thought you were someone else," she said apologetically. "It's fine. Your sister does seem like one of those types that would try to know other people's business," the Prince said, smiling. "Hey, hey, hey, that's my sister you're talking about! That's a definite understatement!" Elizabeth replied, laughing like she had never laughed before. "So what do you say, want to take a quick stroll around the garden? It's the most beautiful site here at night," the Prince said, taking her hand. "Alright, I'd like that," Elizabeth replied, following him into the darkness.

Elizabeth and the Prince were far up on the redwood oak tree. They were almost at the very top and it was a long way down. Its thick branches were capable of carrying the both of them, fortunately, but there was always the occasional shaking of one branch and the fall of another one. "Can I open m eyes now?" Elizabeth said impatiently, her eyes shut tightly, unable to see anything other than a tiny crack of moonlight. "Yes, you can open them," the Prince replied, watching to see her reaction.

As Elizabeth opened her eyes, she could now see why the Garden of Eden was the Prince's favorite place in the castle. Every plant in the garden seemed to illuminate itself in a yellow light, almost matching to the light a firefly. Fireflies flew around in the air, like a dozen stars flickering around the two, engulfing them in a beautiful light. From where they were, the moon seemed much bigger, giving out a radiant white light that shined down on them like a spotlight, making the garden seem like a paradise of nightlife. Elizabeth felt like she could sit in that one spot for the rest of her life, yet she would never lose the feeling of magic that she experienced right then and there.

"What do you think?" the Prince enquired. "Beautiful doesn't begin to describe it," Elizabeth replied, her mind somewhere else. "My mother showed this to me when I was a little boy. I came up here every night just to see the stars. After she passed on, every time I came up here, I felt like something was missing. Then one day, as I was looking up to the heavens, a breeze came by, and I swear I could here her voice. I could hear her laugh again, and the way she always said my name. It felt like she was here with me again, and no one can ever bring me that much happiness again. No offense," the Prince said, his eyes filling with sadness. "I know how it feels to lose a loved one. I'm not one of those people who haven't. I lost my father at a really young age, yet I still can remember every single detail about him: his contagious laugh, that sparkle in his eyes every time he looked at my mother, his reassuring smile. I can't remember one day when I didn't think, _what would he say? _or _what would he do in this situation?_ Everything about them always stays with you. They're not there physically, yet somehow their spirit always there with you, almost guiding you in a way. That's how it's been throughout my life. I feel like he's always taking care of me, watching me to make sure I'm doing alright. You probably think I'm crazy, now don't you?" Elizabeth said, watching for any sign of emotion. "No. That actually makes sense," the Prince replied with a small smile. He put a comforting arm around her. "I guess we've both been through traumas in our lives, now, haven't we?" Elizabeth shrugged, staring out into the stars captivated by everything going around her. She still couldn't believe any of this was real: the Prince, the castle, the wedding tomorrow, Cinderella's approval, everything that has happened in the last 24 hours. Tomorrow, she would be wedded. Tomorrow will be the start of a new life. Tomorrow will be the first happiness that she's had in a really long time.

As she kept thinking, the Prince looked at her and said, "You're thinking about tomorrow aren't you? It's against the rules…"  
"What rules?"  
"Look I just want tonight to be just you and me; that's all that matters. I mean, tomorrow is just another day."  
"But…"  
"I have a whole life planned out for us. It will always stay the same."  
"Promise?"  
He looked at her once more. He knew Elizabeth wanted a life for them, too, but she realizes, just like him that plans always change. He knew, just like her, that there can always be obstacles in the way, something to stop them. But for that one moment he forgot everything that could happen and just replied with a heartfelt, "Promise."

"Ah, Rosabella, it's been awhile. What's taken you so long?" a male voice called. Cinderella turned around to see a tall, lean man entering the room. He sat down with his feet up on the table, waiting for her to reply. It was a small gray room, with almost no windows except for maybe the one-way mirror facing in the opposite direction of them on the other side of the room, behind the man, where Cinderella was facing. The only signs of color were the platinum steel table in between her and the man and the orange jump suit he wore. "You've been here," Cinderella said, gesturing to their surroundings, "For the past four years, and you're asking what's taken ME so long?" "Just trying to make some conversation, is all" the man said coolly, acting as collected as possible. "We both know I'm not here for small talk, so let's cut to the chase. I need a little _help_ as you can say, and it involves all this," Cinderella proclaimed, pulling out a thin sheet of paper. Written on it was everything the man needed to know to help her with the little scene. He thought for a second before replying, "I see what's going on in your head, but you're going to have to pull this off on your own. You see, my hands are tied," he gestured towards the handcuffs on his wrists and gave them a little tug before continuing, "But if you really want to do this, go ahead with it. But, I'm going to need a little reward for at least planning and helping…" Cinderella cut him off saying, "I have plenty of cash; payments are no problem!" "You know exactly what I want," the man said with his voice lowered, his tone serious. "Fine, whatever. But you better remember that the next time I need a favor!" Cinderella replied, rolling her eyes. "Okay, okay. Sometimes you could be so bad-tempered! Back to _that_," he gestured towards the sheet of paper in between them; "Here's what you have to do…" he started. He looked around, knowing that they could hear every single word they said. He whispered the plan to her. She had a look of total interest the entire time. Cinderella knew that there was no way this plan could ever fail. _Asking an inmate for help was probably the best idea I've ever had, _she thought. _This plan will not fail; this plan cannot fail_. After he finished, he pulled away and was leaning on his chair once again, as if the last conversation had never happened. The gears in Cinderella's head were whirring to life and she knew exactly how to make every single step possible. A smile spread across her face, a smile that everyone but the man in front of her knew all too well. "What are you smiling about?" the man inquired coolly. _Ugh, more questions! _"Oh…um… Just how much you've changed since the last time I came," Cinderella said, partially lying. "Is that so?" was all he said. He really had changed since the last time she came. His pointed features hadn't changed in the slightest. His once pale complexion was now tanned and fair. He had a faraway look in his eyes that he never had before, and his once perfect face had a scar running from the right side of his temple to the start of his side burns. His eyes used to have a mischievous glint in them, which was now dead, like the look he had on his face that very same moment. Cinderella got the pencil and wrote everything down that she had heard. The man silently nodded, and Cinderella got the paper, ripped it into miniscule pieces, got a Ziploc bag out of her purse, put the shreds in, labeled the bag _To burn for later_, and put the remains back in her purse with a smug look on her face. As she got up to leave he called behind her, "Next time you're bringing it, right?" She answered back, "Yes, of course why wouldn't I?" "Just making sure. I don't want to lose a deal to a nineteen year old," he replied. She laughed at such a thing, as he was always known for his bets and bargains. She turned back to leave. Just before she closed the door, she turned once more and called back, "Bye, Dad!"


End file.
